Sliding-door fastener.



W Char/c3; Z2 falzc'f C. EYTALIS.

SLIDING DOOR FASTBNER. APPLICATION FILED APBHS, 1908 Patented Dec. 27,1910.

G. EYTALIS.

SLIDING DOOR FASTENER. APPLIOATIQN FILED APR.6,1908.

79,454, Patented Dec.27,1910.

3 8HEETSSHEET 3.

5\ F99 1W! I "u CHARLES EYTALIS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SLIDING-DOOR FASTENER.

crease.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 2'7, 1910.

Application filed. April 6, 1908. Serial No. 425,385.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES EYTALIS, a subject of the Czar of Russia, and residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Sliding-Door Fasteners, of which the following is a complete specification.

This invention relates to improvements in looks for sliding doors and more particularly to a lock of that class having a latch hook adapted to be thrown to locking position by the closing of the door.

It is a well known fact that sliding doors for freight cars or other structures oittimes require a considerable effort for their operation, and where locks, having pivoted or swinging latch hooks which are provided with mechanism for locking them in engagement with the door, are employed, it is sometimes desirable that means be provided for either automatically starting the door out of locking position when the locking mechanism is released, or supporting the locking mechanism in release position while the operator manually opens the door.

Heretot'ore locks of this character have not usually been provided with means adapted to simultaneously release the looking mochani nrand to force the door out of its locking position and. thereby avoid the necessity for the operator supporting the locking mechanism in release position with one hand and forcing the door with the other. Furthermore it is ofttimes ditlicult to force freight car doors to completely closed or locking position for the reason that the car when loaded at the center, thereby causing the front edge of the door to diverge from the stop, from its top downwardly, so that, while the top of the door may contact with the stop, the part where the lock is applied will be o iiset from the stop sulliciently to prevent the look from being thrown to locking position until the door is forced up to place.

The object of this invention is to provide a lock for sliding doors in which the look-- ing mechanism may be supported in release position while the door is being opened suit ciently, either automatically or manually, to move it out from engagement with the latch hook.

It is also an object of the invention to provide means for simultaneously releasing the locking mechanism and forcing the door partly open to throw it out of engagement with the latch hook.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a lock for car doors in which the locking mechanism, when in release position, is prevented from being thrown to locking position by the ordinary jarring or jolting to which such devices are subjected, but which is adapted to be easily thrown to locking position by the closing of the door.

Another object of the invent-ion is to provide a lock by means of which the door may be forced to locking position in the event that the top only of the door abuts against the stop and that port-ion of the door adjacent the lock is offset from the stop too far to permit the latch hook to swing into looking engagement.

The invention consists of the matters hereinatter described in the specification and more fully pointed out and defined in the appended claims.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a device embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig, 3 is a. perspective view of the looking bolt. Fig. l is a perspective view of the latch hook. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of a modified form of the device. Fig. 6 is a view of the device shown in Fig. 5 but showing the locking bolt in release position. Fig. 7 is a side elevation showing the latch hook in open position and the locking bolt in position to be actuated by the closing of the door. Fig. 8 is a section taken on line 8-8 of Fig. 5. Fig. 9 is a section taken on line 9 9 of Fig. 5. Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the locking bolt shown in Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive. Fig. 11. is a perspective view of the bolt supporter. Fig. 12 is a perspective view of the latch hook for the device shown in Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive.

As shown in said drawings: Referring first to Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, A indicates the wall of a car or other structure to which the lock is applied, and A indicates a sliding door adapted to abut against the stop a when in closed position.

Rigidly engaged on said wall and extending forwardly of said stop a is the latch bracket B, the forward end I) of which is curved outwardly to provide a deflector for the door when being closed and between which and the wall the forward edge of the door projects when the door is closed. Said bracket, as shown, is provided with longitudinal ribs or flanges Z)7) on its outer side, and at the forward end is provided with a slot Z) between said flanges. Pivoted be tween said flanges on a pivot pin 71* extending therethrough is the latch hook C which extends forwardly in said slot and the point or hook 0 thereof when in locking position projects inwardly from the end I) of the bracket as shown more clearly in F ig. 2, and is adapted to engage in the slot (Z of the latch plate D on the door. Said latch hook is provided at its rear end with an inwardly directed finger 0, adapted when the hook is in closed position, to abut against the rear end of said slot 6 and limit the inward movement of the hook. The latch hook is provided adjacent the butt of said finger with a shoulder c which curves outwardly and rearwardly, and projecting forwardly over said linger c, and between said shoulder and the wall 6 of the bracket, is the locking bolt E which is slidably engaged between the flangcs 7) and D The locking bolt is provided on its for ward end with a head a, which extends downwardly in front of the finger c and, when the hook is open and the bolt is moved rearwardly, said head engages said finger and acts to swing the hook to closed position. On the rear of said bolt is a downwardly directed hook e, the front face of which is at approximately a right angle to the body of the bolt and the rear face of which is inclined downwardly and forwardly. A lug 7) is formed in the flange 7f between two notches L and D in said flange. The rear face of said lug is approximately vertical to correspond with the front face of the hook c, and the-front face thereof is inclined complementally with the rear face of said hook. \Yhen said locking bolt is in locking position the hook e is engaged behind the lug Z), as shown more clearly in Figs. 1 and 5, and by preventing forward movement of the bolt, holds the latch hook in closed position. When the latch hook is in open position, the bolt is at the forward limit of its movement with the hook c seated in the notch 5 as shown more clearly in Fig. 7, and the rear end of the shoulder abuts against the bolt and prevents further outward movement of the latch hook.

Any preferred means may be provided for supporting the locking bolt E out of locking position when it desired to open the door, but as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, a lever F is pivotally and slidably engaged on a pivot pin j' on said bracket which extends through a slot f in said lever, and the upper end of said lever is provided with a lug P which engages in a socket c in the rear end of the locking bolt. If preferred, and as shown, an apertured lug f is provided on the lever F and is adapted when the bolt is in locking position, as shown in Fig. l, to register with a similar lug on the bracket and through which a seal may be secured when it is desired to seal the device.

In the construction shown in Figso to 12 inclusive the bracket B is similar to the bracket B with the exception that the latch hook slot 0 does not open through the end 6 of the bracket, though it may if preferred, and the latch hook C, instead of being pivoted on a pivot pin, is provided with integral trunnions 0 which seat in inwardly opening recesses or bearings b in the inner face of the bracket, as shown more clearly in Figs. 8 and 9.

The locking bolt E is similar to the lock ing bolt E but instead of being provided with an operating lever for throwing it to release position, it is adapted to be manually thrown to such position and there supported by a supporting member G, pivoted on a pivot pin 9 in the bracket, near the rear end thereof. Said member is provided with a forwardly directed lug or projection 9 adapted to be engaged beneath a lug e on the side of the bolt and support the bolt in release position, as shown more clearly in Fig. (l. and forwardly on its under side and the lug e is inclined downwardly and rearwardly on its upper side and is normally engaged beneath the lug g, as shown in Fig. 5, so that when the rear end of said bolt is raised the lug e acting on the lug g throws the member rearwardly until the ing 6 has passed above the lug when said member swings forwardly and projects the lug g forwardly beneath the lug 6t. Said supporting member may, if preferred, be provided with a handle g by means of which it may be operated to throw the lug g beneath the lug 0 in case the member should fail to swing bv its own wei ht and a 111 is )rovided u D 7 b on the inner face of said member at its lower end, and is adapted to engage against the sides of the notch b and limit the movement of said member. A rearwardly directed arm g is provided on said member and is provided with a seal aperture therein adapted to register with a seal aperture e in the rear end of said bolt when the latter is in locking position.

The operation is as follows: lVhen the door is in closed position the latch hook engages in the latch plate D and the locking bolt is at the rearward limit of its movement with its hook e engaged behind the lug b. lVhile the bolt remains in that position the latch hook is prevented from swinging to open posit-ion by the bolt head 6 which engages the latch finger c.

lVhen it is desired to open the door the 9 Sa1d lug g is inclined upwardly rear end of the bolt is raised to bring the hook 6 out of engagement with the lug I). In the construction shown in Figs. 1 to l; in elusive this is done by means of the lever F which is forced upwardly to bring said hook out of engagement, and then the lower end of the lever is forced rearwardly, thereby forcing the locking bolt forwardly against the forward edge of the latch plate and moving the door open sufficiently to throw the latch hook out of the latch plate, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2. When the locking bolt is released from the lug b the opening of the door acts to swing the latch hook to open position since the pivotal point of the hook is out of alinement with the pull of the plate D on the hook.

XV hen the latch hook is in open position the locking bolt is at the forward limit of its movement, with the head 0 projecting into the path of the door, and the hook a seated in the notch 5 Since said hook 6 must be raised out of said notch before the I obvious that the bolt will not return to such position by reason of any jar or jolt to which it may be subjected. Furthermore when the hook e is in front of the lug I) the bolt cannot be operated by the lever without raising the lever to throw the hook over said lug, since when the lever is at the lower limit of its movement, forward pressure on the lower end thereof tends to force the hook down onto said lug and cause it to bind thereon 'ith sutlicient force to prevent its operation. This construction therefore prevents the bolt from being thrown to locking position by simply exerting a forward force on the lower end of the lever. But when the door is being closed it abuts against the forward end of the bolt and easily forces it to locking position, and the head 0 moves the latch finger rearwardly and causes the latch hook to swing into engagement with the latch plate and thus secure the door in closed position.

In the construction shown in Figs. 5 to 12 the locking bolt may be manually raised to release position and the supporting member will swing forwardly on its pivot to bring its lug g beneath the lug e on the bolt and support the bolt in release position. The door may then he slid open by the operator, and in opening it acts to swing the latch hook out of engaging position and to move the bolt forwardly out of engagement with the supporting member and into position to be engaged by the door when being closed.

lVith the construction shown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, if the door fails to close completely by reason of its upper front corner striking against the stop, the latch plate will be suiiiciently near the stop to permit the point of the latch hook to engage in the latch plate and when the upper part of the lever is thrown rearwardly the latch hook will draw the door up to place.

Obviously a device constructed in accordance with my invention affords a very effective and. quickly acting lock and obviously many details of construction may be varied without departing from the principles of my invention.

I claim as my invention:

1. In av device of the class described the combination with a latch hook of means pivotally supporting the same, and a locking bolt adapted to engage said hook with one end and said supporting means with its other end and hold the hook in closed position.

2. In a device of the class described the combination with a pivotally supported latch hook having a finger thereon, of a supporting member therefor, and a locking bolt slidably engaged in said member and adapted when moved to locking position to engage said linger and throw the latch to closed position.

3. In device of the class described the combination with a bracket of a latch hook pivoted thereon and a locking bolt movable longitudinally of the hook and adapted when in locking position to engage over said hook with one end and with the other end to engage a part on said bracket and hold the latch hook from movement.

In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket having a projection thereon, of a latch hook pivoted on said bracket. and. a locking bolt movable longitudinally of said hook and adapted when in locking position to engage said projection and said hook and hold the latter from movement.

5. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket of a laterally swinging latch hook pivotally engaged therein, and a locking bolt having a head on one end adapted to engage said latch hook, and having a hook on the other end adapted to engage a part on said bracket and lock the book from movement.

6. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket ha 'ing a lug thereon, of a latch hook pivoted in said bracket, a sliding locking bolt adapted to engage said hook with one end and having a hook on its opposite end adapted to engage said lug and hold the latch hook in closed position, and means adapted to support said bolt in release position.

7. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket of a latch hook pivoted therein, a lug on said bracket, a locking bolt slidably engaged over said latch hook and having a head on one end adapted to engage the same, and a hook on the other end of said bolt adapted to engage said lug, and means adapted to hold said bolt in release position.

8. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket of a latch hook pivoted thereon, a locking bolt engaged to said hook and adapted to be moved forwardly when the hook is thrown to open position, means adapted to hold said bolt at the rearward limit of its movement, and means adapted to hold said bolt in release position.

9. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket of a latch hook pivoted thereon. a latch plate adapted to be engaged by said hook, alocking bolt connected with said latch hook and adapted when at the forward limit of its movement to project into the path of said plate, means adapted to lock said bolt at the rearward limit of its movement and means adapted to hold said bolt in release position.

10. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket of a laterally swinging latch hook pivoted therein and having a finger thereon, a locking bolt slid ably engaged in the bracket and adapted to engage said finger, and a latch plate adapted to contact with said bolt and move it to looking position when the latch hook is open.

11. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket of a latch hook pivoted therein, a locking bolt movable longitudinally of said latch hook, a latch plate adapted to engage said bolt and throw the hook to locking position. and means on said bracket adapted to hold the bolt in locking position.

12. In a device of the class iilescribed the combination with a bracket of a latch hook pivoted therein and having an inwardly directed finger, a locking bolt slidably engaged in said bracket and provided with a head. adapted to engage said linger, interlocking means on said bolt and bracket, and means adapted to hold said bolt out of locking engagement.

13. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket having a lug thereon, of a latch hook pivoted on the bracket, a locking bolt slidably engaged on said hook, means on said bolt adapted when said bolt is at one limit of its movement to engage said lug and lock the hook in closed position, and a latch plate adapted when the hook is open to enter behind the bracket and engage the bolt and move it to locking position, and cause the bolt to engage the hook and move it to closed position.

a. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket of a latch plate adjacent thereto, a latch hook pivoted on the bracket and adapted to engage said plate, a locking bolt for said hook, anda lever slidably connected with said bolt adapted to throw the bolt from looking position and force the latch plate away from the bracket.

15. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket, of a latch plate, a latch hook pivoted on said bracket and adapted to engage said plate, a locking bolt for said hook, and a lever pivoted on said bracket and adapted to force said bolt against said plate and move it from the bracket.

16. In a device of the class described the combination with a bracket adapted to be supported adjacent a door opening, of a latch hook pivoted thereon and adapted to lock a door in closed position, a locking bolt for said hook, and a lever connected'with said bolt and adapted to force the bolt against the door and move the door to partly open position.

17. A lock comprising a bracket adapted to be supported adjacent a door opening, a latch plate adapted to be mounted on a door for said opening, a latch hook pivoted in said bracket, a bolt slidably mounted in said bracket, a lever slidably mounted on said bracket and pivotally connected with saidbolt, said lever being adapted when thrown in one direction to force the bolt against the plate and open the door, and when thrown in the opposite direction to force the hook into engagement with said plate and draw the door to completely closed position.

18. A lock comprising a bracket, a latch plate, a latch hook pivoted on the bracket and adapted to engage the plate, a bolt movable longitudinally of the hook, and a lever slidably and pivotally mounted in the bracket and adapted to operate said bolt.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES EYTALIS.

Witnesses W. IV. YVITHENBURY, IV. A. SWAREN. 

